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California Pulse
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'David V. Goliath' Litigation Boutique Launches In SoCal
A longtime Miller Barondess LLP trial lawyer has joined forces with a former Los Angeles federal prosecutor to launch a nationwide litigation boutique representing both plaintiffs and defendants in high-stakes business disputes.
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Voir Dire: Law360 Pulse's Weekly Quiz
The legal industry marked the end of October with another action-packed week as BigLaw firms announced partner promotions and expanded their practice offerings. Test your legal news savvy here with Law360 Pulse's weekly quiz.
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Law360 Pulse Spotlight On Mid-Law Work
Foley Hoag LLP's work on the acquisition of a healthcare services platform and Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP handling a trademark suit for a luxury pen brand lead this edition of Law360 Pulse's Spotlight On Mid-Law Work, recapping the top matters for Mid-Law firms from Oct. 17 to 31.
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California State Judge Admonished For Acts Of Misconduct
A California state judge has been hit with a public admonishment by a judicial watchdog for "numerous acts of misconduct," including discussing litigants and pending cases "in an area of the courthouse where she could be overheard."
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Education Firms Fagen Friedman, Kriha Boucek To Combine
Fagen Friedman & Fulfrost LLP and Kriha Boucek LLC will combine next year, creating an education law practice with more than 150 lawyers in 11 offices across the country, according to an announcement this week.
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Habba Cites Essayli Ruling To Defend Role In NJ Cases
The U.S. Department of Justice has urged the Third Circuit to reinstate Alina Habba's authority in two criminal prosecutions, arguing a recent California ruling backs her power to supervise cases as first assistant, even if she's barred from acting as U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey under federal vacancy law.
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Law Firm Real Estate Report
Mergers and lateral hires helped some law firms expand their footprints around the U.S. in October, including Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP's new office in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP's plans for a new office in West Palm Beach, Florida.
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This CLO Says The Process Is As Important As The Answer
Engaging the right people and building alignment is as crucial as reaching solutions, Anirma Gupta, the top lawyer at technology company Unity, told Law360 Pulse this week.
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Merchant & Gould Taps IP Boutique Leader To Head LA Office
Intellectual property firm Merchant & Gould PC is boosting its West Coast team with a copyright and trademark litigator becoming the managing partner of its 4-year-old Los Angeles office, the firm said Wednesday.
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Netflix Settles Former India Legal Director's Gender Bias Suit
Netflix has settled a wrongful termination and gender discrimination suit filed by the company's former director of business and legal affairs in India, according to a Los Angeles County Superior Court filing.
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Cisco CLO's Pay Jumps $3.3M To $15.8M In Fiscal 2025
The chief legal officer at technology giant Cisco Systems Inc. earned $15.8 million in total compensation for fiscal year 2025, according to a recent securities filing, keeping her firmly planted among the top 20 highest paid general counsel in the U.S.
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Alston & Bird Sanctioned $10K For LinkedIn Juror Research
A California federal judge has sanctioned Alston & Bird LLP $10,000 for conducting juror research on LinkedIn ahead of a trial in which it fended off $174 million in patent infringement claims against GoPro, saying privacy has been eroded in the age of the internet, and he considers LinkedIn research to be juror contact because of the notifications it sends to users.
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Mid-Law Firms Exercise Caution In Limited Spending For AI
With smaller legal technology budgets than their BigLaw cousins, Mid-Law firms are cautiously making investments in AI tools with an eye on utilizing the technology in low-risk and cost-effective ways.
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4 Ways Associates Can Ace Their Annual Review This Year
It’s year-end review time. How can associates put themselves in the best position possible to advance their careers? Here are four tips.
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LA's Acting US Atty Essayli 'Not Lawfully Serving,' Judge Says
Bill Essayli "is not lawfully serving" as the acting U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, a federal judge ruled Tuesday evening, disqualifying President Donald Trump's pick from serving in that role while declining to outright toss indictments in three criminal cases under his supervision.
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Next Era Legal Duo Take 'Fractional GC' Model To The Bank
California lawyers Eric Proos and Jeff Monahan started a law firm this year to help early-stage growth companies build out their in-house legal operation, but the ambitious founders are leveraging home-grown AI and eyeing the possibility of outside investment as they seek to grow themselves.
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Calif. Atty Seeks $25K As Fee Sanction For AI Error
A California attorney representing a mobile app platform in a small-time copyright and contract suit playing out in Oakland federal court has asked for $25,000 as reimbursement for work he said went into responding to an error-ridden motion and subsequent time spent on the matter.
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Kirkland Litigator Joins Benesch In San Francisco
Benesch Friedlander Coplan & Aronoff LLP announced that an experienced San Francisco-based litigator has joined the firm after over a decade with Kirkland & Ellis LLP.
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Barnes & Thornburg Partner Class Dips To 16 Attys
Barnes & Thornburg LLP has elevated 16 attorneys to partners who are based in eight of the firm's offices including in Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey and California, marking a slight decline from the firm's 2024 partner class of 19.
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Texas Co.'s Lack Of Counsel Sinks Perplexity AI TM Suit
A Texas company suing Perplexity AI Inc. for trademark infringement had its case tossed by a California federal judge who said it had ignored warnings that it couldn't proceed without representation.
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How Leaderboard Firms Define Success
The 2025 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard law firms are balancing business strength with social responsibility, global reach with local impact, and the ability to lead complex matters while meeting clients' evolving needs. Law360 caught up with firm leaders from this year’s Leaderboard to discuss what success looks like, and how they are positioning their firms for the future.
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The 2025 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard
Check out the Law360 Pulse Leaderboard to see which firms are leaders in all-around excellence this year.
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The Litigation Reach Of The 100 Practice Footprint Firms
The top 100 firms on Law360's 2025 Practice Footprint ranking have left a clear mark across federal district courts. Our interactive map shows where each firm has appeared in district court cases over the past three years — revealing the breadth of each firm's national reach.
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These Firms Top The 2025 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard
What makes a law firm stand out in a crowded field of top-tier competitors? What does it take to be a well-rounded firm? Presenting the 2025 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard — showcasing the firms that demonstrate excellence on measures of prestige, responsible business practices, and the reach of their legal work.
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The 2025 Practice Footprint Ranking: How Firms Stack Up
These 100 firms stand out for their impressive litigation footprints and transactions work. See who's leading the pack across four categories: variety of cases, range of jurisdictions, closing large merger and acquisition deals, and handling registered offerings.
Expert Analysis
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Looking Under The Hood Of The $3,000 Billable Hour
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In recent years, top-tier law firms have pushed hourly rates to unprecedented heights, with some partners commanding $3,000 per hour — but this eye-popping number doesn’t tell the full story, as there are numerous caveats and rigorous winnowing along the way, says Christopher Seck at Squire Patton.
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How Law Firms Can Keep Nonequity Partners Happy
Law firms that successfully manage two-tiered partnership do so by creating a culture that treats everyone with respect and by establishing financial incentives outside their base compensation to reward performance, says Carol Morganstern at Major Lindsey.
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Biz Development Tip Of The Month: Leverage Your Atty Bio
If maintained properly, your firm bio can help attract potential clients and create authentic connections, so it's crucial to take steps to write an updated attorney profile that goes beyond a list of credentials, says Raychel Lean at Reputation Ink.
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Ask A Mentor: How Can I Promote Thoughtful Use Of AI?
Eran Kahana at Maslon discusses how partners can encourage responsible use of artificial intelligence tools within their firms by learning to spot pitfalls common to AI-generated work product and championing firmwide procedures and trainings that address the risks of uncritically relying on this powerful but imperfect technology.
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Making Legal Cents: Firm Culture Is The New Game Plan
Law firm culture is often dismissed as a soft factor — merely platitudes on a website that seem disconnected from the bottom line — but by intentionally embedding a strong culture into day-to-day operations, law firms can achieve sustainable success, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Strategic Consulting.
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5 Questions Firms Must Ask For Successful Lateral Integration
To ensure that lateral partners effectively integrate their books of business, firms should design a structured transition plan based on a few fundamentals, from tracking the right data to implementing meaningful incentives, says Lana Manganiello at Practice Growth Partner.
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Goldilocks Solution: Why The 4-Day Office Week Is Just Right
As law firms continue to wrestle with return-to-office policies, many are being pulled toward one or the other of two extremes: the rigidity of a five-day in-office schedule and the laissez-faire approach of a flexible three-day hybrid model — but a four-day in-office workweek may be the sweet spot, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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As Attys Adopt Generative AI, 3 Elements Should Be Cardinal
As the legal world increasingly adopts generative artificial intelligence, lawyers and firms must develop and utilize strong prompting skills, keep a pulse on forthcoming tech evolutions, and remain steadfast to ethical obligations, say Michele Carney at Carney & Marchi and Marty Robles-Avila at BAL.
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Rethinking 'No Comment' For Clients Facing Public Crises
“No comment” is no longer a cost-free or even a viable public communications strategy for companies in crisis, and counsel must tailor their guidance based on a variety of competing factors to help clients emerge successfully, says Robert Bowers at Moore & Van Allen.
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Biz Development Tip Of The Month: Prioritize Connections
One reason business development in the legal industry seems so mysterious is because human relationships are so complex, but lawyers can reorient their thinking in two important ways to drive the process of connecting with new colleagues and contacts, say Jamie Lawless and Angela Quinn at Husch Blackwell.
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Overcoming US Law Firms' Hesitancy To Enter Indian Market
Successful private equity exits with strong returns have solidified India's buyout market as an increasingly attractive destination for future investments, offering compelling reasons for the U.S. legal community to overcome its caution on the country's markets, says Vaishali Movva at Eimer Stahl.
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Biz Development Tip Of The Month: Make A Plan For The Year
While firms are busy allocating resources and assessing client demand, individual attorneys should use the start of the year to slow down and create a personal business plan, which can be accomplished with a few steps, say Elizabeth Gooch, Teri Robshaw and Chris Newman at McDermott.
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Talking Mental Health: Caring For Everyone As A Firm Leader
Reid Phillips at Brooks Pierce discusses how he manages the pressure of running a law firm, how sources of stress in the legal industry have changed over the past decade, and what firm leaders should do to help manage burnout and mental health issues among employees.
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How Firms Can Use LinkedIn To Aid Marketing Efforts In 2025
LinkedIn has several features law firms can use to showcase their capabilities and thought leadership to reach prospective and existing clients, including the Event and Live features, says Sofia Millar at Reputation Ink.
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Talking Mental Health: Managing Emotions In Trauma Cases
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Nikki Hurtado at The Ferraro Law Firm discusses what motivates her to represent victims of catastrophic injuries, how she copes with the emotional toll of such cases, and what other attorneys taking on similar cases can do to protect their mental well-being.